Journal of the Minnesota Precision Manufacturing Association

PRESIDENT’S | LETTER
Building a Base
MAINTAINING MANUFACTURING
by Mike Gramse
In my last letter I wrote about leaving
on a trip to Southeast Asia and the
appreciation I have for my staff who
would allow me to be out of the country
for 3 weeks. Now, obviously, we are back
from Asia so I thought I would share
some observations with you.
None of the places we went to,
including Bangkok; Singapore; Vung
Tau, Vietnam; Taiwan; Okinawa,
Japan; and Hong Kong, Shanghai, and
Beijing, China were anything like I had
remembered. We only saw a small part of
each city and for only one day each, but
I was amazed at how westernized they
have all become, even Vietnam.
To me they all looked like any other
big city in the United States. They have
wide, four lane highways, tall buildings
and landscaped boulevards, along with
Kentucky Fried Chickens and 7-Elevens
everywhere. Everyone dresses like us or
better and an unbelievable number have
cell phones.
It appears to me that much of the old
culture is gone. Their local tours took us
to areas that have replicated or preserved
their culture, in a fashion similar to that
of our pioneer villages. The old stuff
seems to be all gone except for a few
isolated pockets.
I was surprised to talk with the local
people; they all seem to be pretty pleased
with their lifestyles and their governments,
even in Vietnam. Thailand is bracing for
demonstrations and hundreds of police
officers and soldiers are getting prepared.
That said, I don’t understand how
their economies work. A $40,000 car in
Vietnam cost $20,000 in the United States
and a $30,000 Dodge van in the United
States cost $60,000 in China. I don’t know
how there can be so many cars when the
average income ranges from $100 to $200
per month.
We had spent several days in Beijing
10 years ago, and today you wouldn’t have
known it was the same city. The old areas
They all are building
a manufacturing
base and we will
need to maintain
ours in order to not
be passed by.
and a billion bicycles all have disappeared
and have been replaced by four-to-six
lane roads, subways, and shopping areas
with designer products or replicas there
of. The Olympic Village buildings are
amazing. It seems impossible to complete
so much change in just 10 years.
But what really surprises me is that
the economies are growing in all of these
countries. Their standards of living are
improving and they all seem pretty happy.
They certainly haven’t caught up to us, but
they are getting closer. If Beijing could
rebuild itself in 10 years, how far behind
are they really?
Our country seems to have been pretty
stagnant, or maybe even retracted in the
past 10 years but, obviously, we are setting
the standard and it’s going to take a lot of
something to maintain our position.
They all are building a manufacturing
base and we will need to maintain ours in
order to not be passed by.
Preserve the Programs. GET ENGAGED.
By the way, my staff did a great job
while I was gone; I had no reason to
worry. PM
Mike Gramse is president
of MRG Tool & Die Corp. in
Faribault, Minn. He can be
reached at
mgramse@toolanddie.net.
www.pm-mn.com
Supporting Minnesota in becoming
the world leader in precision contract
manufacturing and related technologies.
EDITOR | PUBLICATIONS MANAGER
Amy Slettum
SALES MANAGER
Tim Crolley
Designer | Art Director
Severyn Skoug
Minnesota Precision
Manufacturing Association
5353 Wayzata Blvd., Suite 207
Minneapolis, MN 55416
952.564.3041
www.mpma.com
MPMA Officers
President
Mike Gramse, MRG Tool & Die Corp.
Vice President
Bob Miller, Kendeco Tool Crib
Treasurer
Paul Huot, Huot Manufacturing Company
Secretary
Kim Arrigoni, Haberman Machine, Inc.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Jaime Nolan, CAE
associate DIRECTOR
Luann Bartley
Editorial Committee
Chair, Editor-in-Chief
Brenda Kyle
blk@sppa.com
Michelle Gates
mgates@bpkz.com
Denny Nybo
dennynybo@comcast.net
Bill Remes
billr@ameristarmfg.com
Chuck Remillard
chuckr@kurt.com
Ted Roberts
troberts@robertsautomatic.com
Andrew Skoog
apskoog@gmail.com
Fred Zimmerman
zimco@visi.com
For editorial, advertising or
membership information:
Voice: 952.564.3041
Fax: 952.252.8096
Precision Manufacturing (ISSN 0273-7523),
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Copyright ©2010 Minnesota Precision
Manufacturing Association.
6 | PRECISION MANUFACTURING July | August 2010